Sharing a vision of the ‘New Europe’ 

Yet a sense of disillusion with the European Union is growing among its citizens, he believes, exemplified by the rejection of the Lisbon Treaty in Ireland. 

Eyskens highlights the gap that exists between European leaders and citizens, whose concerns differ greatly. While Europe's citizens "care little for the details of EU constitutional reform" and are keen on finding solutions to specific matters, Eurocrats tend to be more results-oriented, seeking an efficient decision-making system, he says. 

In spite of this, Eyskens warns leaders not to adopt a "wait-and-see attitude". This would be "totally irresponsible", preventing a number of crucial shortcomings from being addressed, he says. Citing the simplification of the voting system in the Council of Ministers as an example. 

Eyskens calls for the UK to join the bloc's economic and monetary Union (EMU), insisting that if the EU is to progress beyond the limits of a common economic and monetary policy and develop a common foreign policy, then "the UK needs to be on board". He argues that "exchange rate fluctuations between sterling and the euro disturb market forces among member states" and may isolate the UK in the long term. 

Given London's position as an influential financial centre, Eyskens suggests an "honourable compromise" whereby Britain would become an EMU member and "take a seat in all its institutions like the European Central Bank (ECB) [...] while also being able to keep the pound in its relations with third countries". "The euro would thus have to be accepted in the UK and in Commonwealth countries as legal tender," he explains, accompanied by closer cooperation between the Bank of England and the ECB. 

He foresees closer intercontinental cooperation and integration of Europe with the rest of the world, particularly considering the increasing rounds of trade liberalisation between the EU and the US. In the long term, this may lead to an Atlantic Monetary Union and an EU-US free trade area, he claims. 

This is the meaning of Eyskens' 'New Europe', representing a departure from "the Europe of the past", which he describes as the integration period that started with the Schuman Plan. 

He concludes that such "very long term thinking is a prospect that even today should be recommended to policymakers as a grand design for the future".